There is currently marketed a prior art pulling and lasting machine Model SG which is distributed in the United States by the Machinery Division of the USM Corporation of Beverly, Mass. The SG machine incorporates a plurality of pincers wherein each pincers is mounted for heightwise movement between upper and lower positions. Powered means effect this heightwise movement. The powered means are initially caused to retain the pincers in their upper positions in which positions the pincers grip the margin of an upper mounted on a last and stretch the toe portion of the upper about the last pursuant to upward movement of the last. A handle for each pincers is so mounted in the machine as to be movable away from an idle position. Each handle is so connected to a pincers as to cause its associated pincers to be lowered from its upper position to an intermediate position in response to movement of the handle from its idle position to an advanced position, the distance between the pincers upper position and the pincers intermediate position being proportional to the extent of movement of the handle away from its idle position to its advanced position. Retaining means are provided that enable the pincers to be retained in its intermediate position upon release of the handle in its advanced position. The purpose of moving selected pincers to their intermediate positions by moving corresponding handles to their advanced position is to reposition the upper about the last if it is not properly positioned in the last when the upper is stretched about the last so as to properly orient the upper on the last for a subsequently performed wiping operation as explained in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,157,897 and 3,233,261. After the selected pincers have been so moved by the handles, wipers are caused to move through a wiping stroke to wipe the margin of the toe portion of the upper against an insole located on the bottom of the last as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,157,897 and 3,233,261. Prior to the completion of the wiping stroke, all of the pincers are caused to release the upper margin and all of the pincers are lowered to their lower positions out of the path of the incoming wipers. The wipers are then retracted and the pincers are raised to their upper positions in readiness for the next machine cycle.